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LIMITATIONS AND INDICATIONS IN THE TREATMENT OF CANCER OF THE THYROID WITH RADIOACTIVE IODINE*†
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1951
Year
Selective SensitivityRadiation TherapyMedicineRadionuclide TherapyIodine Deficiency DisordersThyroid DiseaseDestructive Ionizing RadiationThyroid DisordersThyroid PhysiologyConventional TreatmentRadiopharmaceutical TherapyDermatologyPublic HealthThyroid HormoneOncologyRadiation OncologyNuclear MedicineRadiology
THE conventional treatment of a tumor by destructive ionizing radiation is based upon a selective sensitivity of tumor tissue as compared to normal tissue. The treatment of diseased thyroid tissue by radiation from radioiodine is based upon selective concentration of iodine by functioning thyroid tissue. In the former instance tissue sensitivity is the allimportant consideration. In the latter instance tissue concentration of the radioactive iodine is the sine qua non of treatment. The thyroid avidity for a single element, i.e., iodine, makes it unique among all tissues because of its capacity to concentrate radioactive isotopes in amounts which can be partially to totally destructive to this organ. This is amply demonstrated in the reports from many clinics on the successful treatment of Graves' disease with radioiodine (1, 2, 3, 4). There are also reports (5, 6, 7) of selected cancers of the thyroid which concentrated enough radioactive iodine to exert a cancericidal effect on the tumors.